Porsche
550A Spyder

Why it matters

The 550A is the 1956 development of the 550 Spyder. Its full tube space frame replaced the heavier ladder-style structure, and a new low-pivot rear suspension made its handling more predictable. Umberto Maglioli won the 1956 Targa Florio outright in one, the first of Porsche's eleven Targa Florio victories, and the car continued the "giant killer" reputation of its predecessor. Porsche counts forty cars.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

Photos

Exterior, interior and detail photos with their licences.

• Porsche 550A Spyder (Wikimedia Commons: search)
  Photo: Thesupermat · CC BY-SA 4.0
• Porsche 550A Spyder (Wikipedia article: Porsche 550)
  Photo: Yanko Malinov · CC BY-SA 4.0

Production

Every figure says what it counts.

Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.

History

The 550A appeared at the end of 1956 and first raced at the 1956 Nürburgring 1000 km, where it won its class. Its Targa Florio win followed the same year, a lone works entry driven by Maglioli according to RM Sotheby's and by Huschke von Hanstein according to Bonhams, whose account differs. Later 550As were sold to customers in North and South America, and teams that had run earlier 550s bought the new cars.

Late cars were built into 1958; chassis 550A-0145 was the second to last of 40 and raced for the works in 1958, taking fifth overall and second in class at Le Mans. By 1962 the 550A had been overtaken by the RS 60 and RS 61.

Technical specifications

Engine

Transmission & drivetrain

Chassis, body & dimensions

Performance

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

Identification guide

How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.

The 550A looks like the 550 but can be recognised by louvred access panels behind the doors, small air intake ducts in the nose and, per Bonhams, a rear engine cover lifted off without rear hinges, repositioned rear grilles, a front-mounted spare wheel and smaller lighting. Underneath it has a full tube space frame (designed by Leopold Schmidt, per Bonhams) and a low-pivot swing axle. Bodies were hand-beaten aluminium by Karosserie Wendler of Reutlingen. Chassis numbers carry the prefix 550A-, and a hand-written factory data sheet from the Porsche Museum can document an individual car.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

1. 1
   Time travel: The Porsche 718 Level A Porsche Newsroom · 2016-06-04

   • 550 A Spyder (forty cars made)

   Accessed 2026-11-12
2. 2
   RM Sotheby's Villa Erba 2019 – 1957 Porsche 550A Spyder by Wendler Level B

   • 40 550A Spyders produced

   Accessed 2026-11-12
3. 3
   1957 Porsche 550A Spyder, chassis 550A-0116 (lot r0149) Level C RM Sotheby's

   • 1.5-liter four-cam boxer-four
   • 1.5-liter four-cam boxer-four designed by Dr. Ernst Fuhrmann
   • teased up to about 135 hp at 7,200 rpm
   • about 135 hp at 7,200 rpm
   • 107 foot-pounds of torque in full racing tune
   • close-ratio four-speed transaxle ... additional "semi-first" gear
   • full tube spaceframe with several rear supportive cross-members
   • new low-pivot arrangement
   • large finned brake drums were drilled laterally for additional cooling
   • hand-beaten aluminum alloy body shell ... Karosserie Wendler of Reutlingen
   • factory-claimed top speed of nearly 150 mph

   Accessed 2026-11-12
4. 4
   1958 Porsche 550A Spyder, chassis 550A-0145 Level C Bonhams · 2018-01-18

   • 547/3 specification ... resulting in 135 horsepower
   • newly designed low pivot swing axle in back
   • feather-like 1170 pounds of weight in total

   Accessed 2026-11-12